By Abigail MacMillan, Editor-in-Chief
A 6’3” man from Voorhees, N.J. stands at the doors to the Orlando W. Houts Gymnasium at Susquehanna University. The freshly waxed floors shine under the strong fluorescent lights as the man looks onward to the River Hawk logo that sits at halfcourt.
The man, Noah Klinewski, a senior guard on the men’s basketball team stares into the gym that will be his home turf for the upcoming months.
Echoes of basketballs being dribbled onto the court can be heard from down the hallway outside of the gym as players on the team finish a friendly pick-up game. As the sounds of dribbling basketballs muffle out, Klinewski admires the beginning of the end of his senior season as a River Hawk. As his time is starting to run out on the court, he remembers his childhood that shaped him into the athlete that he is today.
“My childhood was filled with a lot of fun memories because of basketball,” Klinewski said. “I think the moments that really stuck out to me were all the tournaments traveling all around or just the long days of coming home after practice, eating dinner with my family and getting my homework done.”
But before Klinewski was old enough to think about basketball, it was already in his blood. His mother, Joyce, played Division I basketball at Drexel University on a full scholarship. Also, three of his aunts played together on their high school team that won the state championship.
When asked about growing up in a big basketball family, Klinewski said: “Growing up in a family where basketball was huge shaped who I am in a big way. It taught me so much about life and how to handle certain things. At certain moments however it did create feelings of anxiety and uneasiness when it came to trying to make a name for myself knowing that I had big shoes to fill.”
Klinewski, a point guard, never had any playing time during his freshman and sophomore seasons in high school, but he had 10 seconds left of his senior season in overtime to lead his team to victory. The coach made a play around Klinewski for him to get the ball to the basket to send the game into double overtime. Instead, Klinewski read the defense and decided to fake one way to take a step-back three-point shot. That shot won the game 62-61 over his school rival, Haddon Heights.
“I honestly still don’t know how it went in. It all happened so quick. I still have the video of it, and I still watch it to this day to make sure it actually happened,” he smiled.
Klinewski averaged 18 points and 5 assists per game in his senior season before COVID-19 hit. He also scored his 1,000 points during the last game of the regular season. But it wasn’t always that great for Klinewski.
During his first two years of highschool he didn’t get any playing time unless his team was blowing out the opponent or was far behind. Other than that, he was always on the sideline cheering on his teammates.
Finally, Klinewski started his junior season as the team’s point guard. “My first games were rough, but I got used to it,” he said. He averaged 15 points and three assists per game that year.
Outside of school and off the court, Klinewski was making a name for himself in other ways. When he wasn’t scoring points or cheering on his teammates, he was cheering on kids with special needs. Noah volunteered at his local gym to teach kids how to play different sports as part of the Special Olympics program.
He started to volunteer at this gym in the seventh grade when his brother and personal basketball trainer introduced the program to him in seventh grade. The gym is no longer in business, but the memories made on the court will always be remembered by Noah and those kids.
“Volunteering made me realize that there are more things to life and that it is so important to treat everyone with the same amount of love and respect,” he said with a smile.
From being glued to the bench, to being the glue on a championship high school team. Noah Klinewski went from getting no playing time to scoring the game-winning shot for Eastern Regional High School in Voorhees, N.J.
But the high of being that hero in high school was short lived as Klinewski started his college career.
Again, Klinewski found himself on the bench at SU unless the team was blowing out the opponent or if there was no possibility of coming back in a game. Although, being sidelined was hard for him. Noah is making the most out of the situation.
Klinewski said: “Not seeing the floor so much taught me that there’s more to life than the game. It’s taught me how to be a better teammate.”
Sitting on the orange benches in the gym, Noah acknowledges the commitment that he made to the team his first year. Even though he’s barely seen the floor throughout his college career, he continues to support his team and teammates on and off the court.
His love for the game continues to grow as his family pushes him to be a better athlete on and off the court and Noah is looking forward to his senior season as a River Hawk. No matter what the outcome is, he plans to see the season through good or bad.
He said: “My hopes are to have a healthy, fun and amazing season. And to enjoy every second of the process because it’s my last. Hopefully our team can win the landmark conference and make it to the NCAA’s.”
Klinewski and the River Hawks are scheduled to take the court 7 p.m. Nov. 9 in a non-conference match against Arcadia University in Glenside, Pa. The match can be streamed through the SU Athletics page with a paid subscription to FLO Sports.
